


To Meet With a Smile

by Paradise_of_Mary_Jane



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-19
Updated: 2016-12-19
Packaged: 2018-09-09 18:28:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8907247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Paradise_of_Mary_Jane/pseuds/Paradise_of_Mary_Jane
Summary: "Your great-aunt seems amazing."Luna can’t really think of a better way of putting it. She just finds that there’s something distinctly remarkable about Queenie Goldstein, who hears everyone’s secret thoughts and has lived for as long as she has, and still smile like she’s still a young girl who’s seeing the world for the first time.Luna meets Queenie for the first time.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so for the people who read my things on tumblr, this happens in the same verse as my queenie/seraphina fics. I just needed to write these two people in the same room together because they're both awesome :D
> 
> Title is taken from a quote from mother Teresa.

There’s really no doubt about it, outside of Hogwarts, the Scamander family house may be the most beautiful thing Luna’s ever seen.

There’s a huge sprawling garden with all sorts of magical creatures, more than Luna’s ever seen in one place. Entire trees filled with Bowtruckles, Demiguises, Swooping Evils, all roaming free in one place. The house itself is small and simple. Just a simple cottage, though that rarely means much in ways of wizards. And Rolf told her that his grandfather is unusually fond of the undetectable extension charms. It’s one of the loveliest things Luna’s ever seen and—

 Rolf takes her hand in his. His touch is warm.

“You nervous?” he asks.

Luna shakes her head. It’s the first time she’s meeting Rolf’s family but she’s not nervous. Rolf is a delightful, amazing person and Luna is certain that whoever raised him would be delightful and amazing as well.

“It’s very beautiful here,” she says. Beside her, Rolf laughs quietly like she’s said something absolutely delightful. He seems to find everything about Luna absolutely delightful. Luna feels very similarly towards him.

“Are you nervous?” Luna asks.

“Just a tad,” Rolf says. He squeezes raises her hand to his lips, pressing a small kiss to it. “Come on then.”

The walk isn’t a long one but Luna can’t help but get lost in the sprawling grass and the trees that tower over them. She can just imagine what she’ll find if she wanders around, just for a bit. Entire colonies of Bowtruckles, protecting their trees. Wary, but that’s fine, Luna would be wary too if she’s spent centuries being pushed aside and have her home stripped of branches. Bowtruckles just need kind smiles and little treats. They’re amazing creatures, really.

The Demiguises are a bit unpredictable, of course. No one really knows the future except them. They might stay away if the story would end in pain and they might come if it ends in happiness. Luna likes not knowing. Eventually, a Demiguise will come on their own. There are only so many futures where things turn out horribly.

“My grandfather owns the place,” Rolf is saying. “It used to be just a small lot. Apparently his family refused to give him his inheritance, but gradually, he bought off the land surrounding it. Couldn’t stand to be apart from his creatures.”

“I can imagine,” Luna says.

“I used to spend my summers here, back when we still lived in New York. My parents, you know—” he cuts himself off and for a moment, it seems like he’s gotten lost, too. Memories are very easy places to get lost in. Luna squeezes his hand and he seems to find his way back. “I always begged Gran to take me back here, every day. I like it better here. It’s quieter. New York is very loud.”

“And that’s why you’re not my favorite grand-nephew.” A voice rings up towards them, a sound like bells, with that distinct, curious way Americans have of speaking. A silver haired woman bounds up to them, a wide smile on her face. Luna notices that she has incredibly blue eyes. “You keep saying you hate New York but I know you really love it.” There’s a cheeky smile on her lips. It fits perfectly well on her aged face. Her eyes seem to shine.

“I’m your only grand-nephew, Granny Queenie,” Rolf says, half-protesting, half-amused. “And that’s not true!”

“Your mouth says words but your mind says otherwise.” She engulfs Rolf in a tight embrace. Luna smiles. It’s nice, seeing Rolf look so at ease. He rarely finds it outside their flat.

“And who’s this?” the woman asks when she pulls away. She turns to Luna with an inquisitive look.

“This is Luna, gran. Luna Lovegood,” Rolf says. “My girlfriend.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Luna says.

“Oh my!” Before she knows it, Luna finds herself engulfed in an equally tight embrace. Her touch is as warm as Rolf’s. “What a lovely girl, you are. I was beginning to think Rolf would never find someone, oh but you’re really amazing aren’t you?”

She pulls away to stare at Luna. Her eyes seem incredibly focused, like a needle, just about to draw blood. But not in a bad way. Luna’s certain that she only draws blood with those eyes when she needs to. Most of the time, she only gets the surface things. The things that lurk just underneath people’s skins.

“Oh and you’re just about as in love with magical creatures as Newt and Rolf are,” Granny Queenie says. “No wonder you get along so well.”

“You’re a legilimens,” Luna says. Granny Queenie’s smile seems to widen.

“Oh you’re a smart one, aren’t you?” she says. “But come in! Come in! People shouldn’t talk around in backyards! I’ll make some tea.”

She doesn’t wait for them to respond, or maybe she just hears their answer in their mind. Luna’s never really met a legilimens. Dumbledore might’ve been one, but he’s never been particularly open about it. It must be pretty lovely, knowing what people are about to say, before they say them.

It might also be incredibly sad, knowing everyone’s secret thoughts that they wouldn’t dare say out loud. Incredibly lonely.

Rolf takes her hand again.

“How do you feel?” he asks.

Luna squeezes his hand. His palms are warm and sweaty.

“It’s very lovely here,” she says. “You’re gran is an amazing person.”

Rolf’s smile eases a bit, a little less nervous and a little more real. It makes the little butterflies in Luna’s chest wake up and fly around all over again. She likes seeing Rolf smile.

“She is,” he says. “She really is.”

 

\--

 

“So Luna, I’ve heard that name before, I’m sure.” Granny Queenie sets down two cups of tea on the table. In her hand, she’s holding a cup of steaming hot chocolate for herself. “You’re a magizoologist, too, right?”

Luna nods.

“Hmm,” Granny Queenie says. “Rolf and Newt talk about you a lot. You do a lot of work abroad?”

“That’s how Rolf and I met,” Luna says. “I was in Romania, looking for the Crumple-Horned Snorcacks, and we stumbled into each other. He’d fallen into a pond full of Grindylows.”

“She saved me,” Rolf says fondly. “Swooped in like it was nothing and dragged me out of there. It was mostly a blur,” he admits, “I don’t really remember most of it.”

Granny Queenie looks between the two of them, a delighted smile on her face.

“Well I’ll be damned,” she says. “The two of you are just made for each other, aren’t you? Newt and Tina won’t be back until dinner, I’m afraid. Something about the Daily Prophet being ridiculous.”

“They are very good at doing that,” Rolf agrees.

Granny Queenie rises, graceful like her namesake. She holds out her hand to Luna and Luna takes it.

“Well c’mon Luna,” Granny Queenie says. “I have something to show you. And it’s not any of your baby pictures, Rolf, don’t worry.”

“I’d love to see pictures of Rolf as a child,” Luna says. “He won’t show me any, for some reason. I think he finds them embarrassing.”

“Sweet Merlin,” Rolf mutters. “I knew the two of you meeting is a bad idea.”

Luna pecks him on the cheek. He doesn’t really seem irritated, more fond. Rolf is incredibly shy about a lot of things but Luna knows he’s also incredibly kind. The tension in his face seems to ease a bit.

“I’ll be back later,” she says. “Then we can go home and I’ll show you of pictures of me when I was young. My mum liked taking pictures. Memories are very important, you know.”

“Absolutely delightful,” Granny Queenie says.

 

 

\--

 

“Why did you come to England?”

Granny Queenie, glances up at her from a pile of photo albums.

“Oh I’m just visiting,” she says. “Tina and I grew up together and neither of us can stand being apart for too long. I’ll be right and back to New York in a few weeks. I can’t leave that city for long, I’m afraid.” She steals a glance towards Luna. “You figured out I’m a legilimens pretty quickly. Most people get scared first.”

“Most people have too many Wrackspurts floating around their heads,” Luna says, shrugging. “They get distracted from the important bits.”

“Most people do,” Granny Queenie agrees. “But you’re a little legilimens yourself, aren’t you? Not thoughts, exactly, but emotions.”

“Maybe,” Luna says. “I’ve never really thought about it that much. My mum used to say that Wrackspurts stay away from me, for some reason. That’s why I look at the world differently.”

“Well your mother was right.” She opens one of the photo albums. A laughing Rolf waves up at them, no more than eleven, in unfamiliar school robes. “You look at the word very differently. It’s a bit amazing.”

“Thank you.” Luna flips through the photo album. She doesn’t understand why Rolf doesn’t want her to see these pictures. He’s absolutely adorable in his red and sea-green uniform.

“He was in Puckwudgie,” Granny Queenie says. “Like me.”

“What does that mean?”

“Well,” Granny Queenie says, leaning in closer. “We’re the healers. The heart. We like taking care of people.”

“That sounds very much like him.” Luna looks up to Granny Queenie’s eyes. They really are rather blue. And soft still, like a young girl instead of an old woman. She seems to be very kind. “And very much like you, too.”

Luna goes through the pictures. Rolf playing keeper. Rolf cradling a flock of pygmy puffs. Rolf with his friends. Rolf graduating. Memories are very easy places to get lost in, even if they’re not her own and Rolf looks so very happy.

“You can have it if you want,” Granny Queenie says.

Luna takes a moment to touch the photograph of Rolf, Newt, and Porpentina Scamander, smiling up at them, before closing the album.

“I couldn’t possibly,” she says. “These are your memories.”

“Well memories are supposed to be shared, aren’t they?” She pushes the album towards Luna. “Have it. We’re old and we’ve seen these a hundred times already. You’ll find a better use for them.”

Luna smiles.

“Thank you,” she says.

Granny Queenie’s smile seems to be brighter than the sun.

 

\--

 

“So what were you guys doing up there?” Rolf asks when they finally come down. “You were gone for quite a bit.”

 Granny Queenie smiles, holding up Luna’s favorite photo album. Rolf groans.

 “It was a bad idea,” he says, “bringing the two of you together.”

 “Oh don’t be such a sour spot, love,” Luna says. “You look very lovely in your uniform.”

 Rolf groans again. Luna thinks it’s mostly to hide his laugh.

  

\--

 

“So what’d you think?” Rolf asks when they leave. “I’m sorry we couldn’t stay for dinner and meet my grandparents.”

 “It’s fine,” Luna says. “Your great-aunt seems amazing. She didn’t laugh at my earrings and she smiles like she just got drenched in gigglewater.”

 Luna can’t really think of a better way of putting it. She just finds that there’s something distinctly remarkable about Queenie Goldstein, who hears everyone’s secret thoughts and has lived for as long as she has, and still smile like she’s still a young girl who’s seeing the world for the first time.

 Rolf seems to understand, though. He laughs in that quiet way of his, when she’s said the right thing. He takes her hand.

 “I love you so much, Luna Lovegood,” he says.

 “I love you, too.” Luna squeezes his hand. His grip is warm and it’s firm.

 And the two of them disappear into the cold, July night.

  

**Author's Note:**

> check me out on [tumblr](http://pdfcct.tumblr.com) if you want.


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